Blazers make a deal, send Jerryd Bayless to the Hornets

Jamie Francis/The Oregonian
Jerryd Bayless goes for a rebound Thursday as the Blazers played the Denver Nuggets in a preseason game at the Rose Garden.

The Trail Blazers on Saturday traded backup point guard Jerryd Bayless to New Orleans for a future first-round draft pick, marking the first significant move by new general manager Rich Cho. (Canzano column)

It is the type of move Cho championed when he was hired in July: It helps the Blazers financially (owner Paul Allen saves $4.6 million), gives them future trade flexibility (the Blazers receive a $2.3 million trade exception) and gives them a potentially valuable asset (first-round pick) that could be parlayed into a larger deal down the road.

"It's a good situation for Jerryd and a good situation for us," Cho said.

The Blazers are carrying 16 players, one more than the NBA maximum, and Cho on Saturday said he plans to release injured center Jeff Pendergraph by 3 p.m. Monday, when the team has to submit its roster to the league office.

That would seemingly mean that second-year guard Patty Mills will make the roster, but Cho said he hasn't decided what he will do with the final spot.

"I'm tossing a couple of things around," Cho said.

Cho said the trade puts the Blazers' backup point guard duties into the hands of rookie Armon Johnson, a tenacious defender who has been solid during the preseason. However, Cho said he also figures that coach Nate McMillan will play Wesley Matthews and Brandon Roy together in the backcourt, with each handling point guard duties.

Bayless, meanwhile, will be reunited with New Orleans head coach Monty Williams, who served as an assistant with the Blazers in Bayless' first two seasons.

Bayless, the No. 11 overall pick in the 2008 draft, averaged 8.5 points and 2.3 assists last season. He had two huge games -- 29 points on Dec. 17 against Phoenix and a career-high 31 on Dec. 23 in San Antonio in his first career start. It was a franchise record for the most points in a player's first start.

But Bayless' determined drives and score-first mentality raised questions whether he was a point guard or a shooting guard. Those questions were answered by Cho, who used the first month of practices and exhibition games to come to Saturday's conclusion:

"Jerryd is not a true point guard," Cho said. "And at two guard on this team, he's stuck, probably as the fourth guy."

In seven preseason games, Bayless averaged 8.0 points and 3.0 assists while shooting 37 percent from the field and 35.3 percent from three-point range (6 for 17).

In return, the Blazers get a conditional first-round pick in one of the next five seasons, meaning New Orleans is allowed to "protect" their pick against a trade if it is a high pick. In 2011, the pick is top seven protected; in 2012, 2013, and 2014 the pick is top eight protected. In the unlikely event the Hornets finish that poorly in the next four seasons, the Blazers will receive two second-round picks in 2015.

The move saves Allen, the billionaire owner, $4.6 million -- Bayless' $2.3 million salary and the dollar-for-dollar tax levied for being over the salary cap. The Blazers also receive the $2.3 million trade exception for one year, meaning they don't have to match salaries in a future trade, but instead can come within $2.3 million (Bayless' salary), plus $100,000.